Posts by Jeff La Noue — Contributor
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Baltimore just got bikeshare, and lots of its bikes are electric
A month ago, Baltimore got its first bikeshare system, Bmorebikeshare, and ridership is already high. Forty percent of the fleet is made up of electric bikes that make it easier to go up hills, and as the system expands people are likely to want more of those. Keep reading…
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Baltimore’s World War I memorial is falling apart
Nearly 100 years after World War I, Baltimore’s memorial is badly deteriorated, and going ignored. As of now, nobody has plans to fix it. Keep reading…
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Baltimore’s problem is sprawl, not a bad economy
The city of Baltimore has over 20,000 vacant row houses and 300,000 fewer residents than at its peak. Governor Larry Hogan recently announced funding to demolish whole blocks of them. A common narrative outside Baltimore is that the city is in collapse thanks to manufacturing jobs leaving, as in many Rust Belt cities. But that’s not the biggest problem. Suburbanization is. Keep reading…
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There’s a plan for more rail options in Baltimore and it doesn’t involve the Red Line
The Red Line might not be happening, but that doesn’t mean Baltimore’s transportation needs have gone anywhere. A plan from 2007 recommends new stations on the MARC’s Penn Line and make it easier to travel to and from Baltimore as well as within the city itself. Keep reading…
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Baltimore’s Red Line connects more than you may think
Many Washington area residents think of the Baltimore Red Line as just a train for Baltimoreans. But it’s not. It can combine with the Purple Line, MARC, the Washington Metro, and existing Baltimore transit service to create a transit network that connects more people and places in Maryland, as well as DC and Northern Virginia. Keep reading…
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Baltimore plans to replace beach volleyball with a parking garage
Over the past 11 years, beach volleyball has become an unlikely success in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, drawing young adults for clean, athletic fun. But as the city moves ahead with plans to replace the volleyball courts with a parking garage and rooftop lawn, typically unengaged millennials are fighting back. Keep reading…
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America can learn from this French city’s complete streets
Strasbourg, France is a beautiful city that takes its complete streets to heart. The roads through the old city gracefully mix street trams/light rail with bicycle paths and friendly traffic calmed streets. Pedestrians move easily. Its central intercity train station is a glamorous historic building sheathed in a chic, modern glass shell. Keep reading…
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An urban park won’t succeed with suburban edges
A large urban park may be an oasis where the city feels distant, but to succeed, a good large urban park also ties in well with neighborhoods at its borders. New York’s Central Park does this well, as does Patterson Park in Baltimore. Druid Hill Park, to its northwest, does not. Keep reading…
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The National Zoo and DC Metro fit together. So could Baltimore’s Zoo and its Metro (but they don’t).
While Washington has a Metro stop with “Zoo” in its name, the Metro subway in Baltimore and its zoo appear to ignore each other. Keep reading…
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Baltimore starts building a real bicycle network
Baltimore transportation officials have proposed a “network of bicycle infrastructure,” including the city’s first-ever cycletrack. It’s a big leap beyond today’s incongruent sharrows and paint. Keep reading…